Serena wins Australian Open

Serena Williams became the first woman to move into the No. 2 ranking from outside the top five in a single tournament by winning the Australian Open.

Williams moved up five places from No. 7 in the WTA Tour tennis rankings, released Monday, with a 2-6, 6-3, 6-0 win over top-ranked Lindsay Davenport in Saturday's women's final.

Roger Federer retained No. 1 position in the men's rankings despite losing in the semifinals of the Australian Open, while Lleyton Hewitt overtook Andy Roddick for second place after reaching the final.

Russia's newest Grand Slam champion, Marat Safin, retained fourth place in the men's rankings after beating Hewitt in Sunday's championship match.

It was third time lucky in Australia for Safin, who'd lost two of the previous three finals at Melbourne Park. Hewitt, who had never previously advanced beyond the fourth round of his home major, moved up one place and Roddick fell one place to No. 3.

Serena Williams saved three match points in her semifinal win over Wimbledon champion Maria Sharapova of Russia, who remained at No. 4, and also beat Amelie Mauresmo in the quarterfinals. Mauresmo slipped back one place from second.

Russia's two other female Grand Slam holders, French Open champion Anastasia Myskina and U.S. Open winner Svetlana Kuznetsova, slipped in the rankings. Myskina dropped from third to fifth and Kuznetsova, beaten by Sharapova in the quarterfinals, fell one place to sixth.

Australia's Alicia Molik made the top 10 for the first time after beating Venus Williams in the fourth round and losing to Davenport in the quarterfinals. The biggest mover was Nathalie Dechy, who jumped from 25th to 13th by making the semifinals in Melbourne, where she eventually lost to Davenport.

Federer, who beat Safin in the 2004 Australian Open final -- the first of his 11 titles last year, retained a massive lead in the men's rankings.

The top four seeded men all made the semifinals at the Australian Open for the first time since 1988. Safin ended Federer's 26-match winning streak in the semifinals, while Hewitt beat Roddick in their semifinal.

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